Be. Cutter et Rp. Guyette, ANATOMICAL, CHEMICAL, AND ECOLOGICAL FACTORS AFFECTING TREE SPECIES CHOICE IN DENDROCHEMISTRY STUDIES, Journal of environmental quality, 22(3), 1993, pp. 611-619
Recently, element concentrations in tree rings have been used to monit
or metal contamination, fertilization, and the effects of acid precipi
tation on soils. This has stimulated interest in which tree species ma
y be suitable for use in studies of long-term trends in environmental
chemistry. Potential radial translocation of elements across ring boun
daries can be a confounding factor in assessing environmental change.
Thus, the selection of species which minimizes radial translocation of
elements can be critical to the success of dendrochemical research. C
riteria for the selection of species with characteristics favorable fo
r dendrochemical analysis are categorized into (i) habitat-based facto
rs, (ii) xylem-based factors, and (iii) element-based factors. Species
with a wide geographic range and ecological amplitude provide an adva
ntage in calibration and better controls on the effects of soil chemis
try on element concentrations. The most important xylem-based criteria
are heartwood moisture content, permeability, and the nature of the s
apwood-heartwood transition. The element of experimental interest is i
mportant in determining which tree species will be suitable because al
l elements are not equally mobile or detectable in the xylem. Ideally,
the tree species selected for dendrochemical study will be long-lived
, grow on a wide range of sites over a large geographic distribution,
have a distinct heartwood with a low number of rings in the sapwood, a
low heartwood moisture content, and have low radial permeability. Rec
ommended temperate zone North American species include white oak (Quer
cus alba L.), post oak (Q. stellata Wangenh.), eastern redcedar (Junip
erus virginiana L.), old-growth Douglas-fir [Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mi
rb.) Franco] and big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata Nutt.). In additi
on, species such as bristlecone pine (Pinus aristata Engelm. syn. long
aeva), old-growth redwood [Sequoia sempervirens (D. Don) Endl.], and g
iant sequoia [S. gigantea (Lindl.) Deene] may be suitable for local pu
rposes.